PROCEEDINGS of the 24th International Congress on Acoustics October 24 to 28, 2022 in Gyeongju, Korea ABS-0764 Detection and classification of soundmarks and special features in urban areas Margret Sibylle ENGEL 1 ; André FIEBIG 2 1 University of Salford, United Kingdom 2 Technische Universität Berlin, Germany ABSTRACT Soundmarks started to be investigated in the 1970s by the composer Murray Schafer. The term was created based on association with landmarks, referring to community sound with specific qualities linked to a geographical area. The identification of soundmarks is significant due to anthropological reasons, as those sounds make the community's acoustic life unique. They deserve to be protected, reinforcing the anthropological characteristics of a community, and enriching the soundscape. The present work aims to systematically collect data on reported soundmarks in different urban scenarios in the German city of Aachen. The classification considers perceptual parameters [sound qualities, emotions, and memories composites], socio-cultural aspects, and objective parameters, such as acoustic and psychoacoustic indicators of the corresponding reported soundmarks. Keywords: Keynotes, Sound Signals, Soundmarks, Soundscape 1. INTRODUCTION Murray Schafer developed the first taxonomy defined for the classification of sound sources at the end of the 1970s. According to Schafer [1], the sound sources in a soundscape are subdivided into keynote sounds, signals and soundmarks. Keynote sounds are not listened to consciously. Even so, their influence on our behaviour and moods is likely [1]. They are mainly related to geography, climate and natural sounds, e.g., water, wind, forests, plains, birds, insects and animals or the pervasive cacophonous din of anthropogenic sounds like omnipresent traffic noise. Signals are foreground sounds and are listened to consciously, like acoustic warnings, are code permitting sounds, e.g., church bells, alarms, sirens, etc. Soundmarks are unique community sounds with special qualities that are perceived by the people in that community [1]. As requested by Schafer and other authors, this study aims to define new sound source classifiers and apply the suggested taxonomy to perceived sound sources in Aachen, Germany taking into account special features. Additionally, other soundscape qualities, acoustic and psychoacoustic indicators and socio-cultural characteristics of the respondents are analysed. 1 m.engel@salford.ac.uk 2 andre.fiebig@tu-berlin.de